Modular housing for the homeless proposed for Olympic Village Station parking lot

A large pay parking lot immediately adjacent to the Canada Line’s Olympic Village Station is set to become another temporary modular housing building for the homeless.

The City of Vancouver is proposing to build a three-storey building containing about 50 single-occupancy units at 595-599 West 2nd Avenue – a property owned by the municipal government.

The temporary modular housing site at 595-599 West 2nd Avenue in Vancouver, next to Olympic Village Station. (City of Vancouver)

Each unit will have a floor area of about 320 square feet. Like other modular housing structures built or planned by the City, all units will consist of private bathrooms and kitchens and residents will share amenity spaces.

The project is subject to a development application, and if approved it will remain at the location for a period of up to five years, with the possibility to extend for another five years.

The development site is on a parking lot located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Ash Street and West 6th Avenue, immediately west of Olympic Village Station. (Google Maps Streetview)

Modular housing structures are being pursued as they can be built much quicker and at a small fraction of a conventional, permanent structure. These structures can also be dismantled and relocated to another site, when the sites they sit on are ready for permanent development.

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Kenneth Chan

National Features Editor at Daily Hive, the evolution of Vancity Buzz. He covers local architecture, urban issues, politics, business, retail, economic development, transportation and infrastructure, and the travel industry. Kenneth is also a Co-Founder of New Year's Eve Vancouver. Connect with him at kenneth[at]dailyhive.com